The fonds consists of records documenting William P. Wolfe's business activity as an antiquarian bookseller in Montreal with a focus on Canadiana, from primarily 1952 to 1985. There are also some scattered earlier materials. The fonds contains chiefly textual records, with one microfiche, one artifact, and a small amount of graphic materials, as well as printed matter. The records are mainly correspondence (letters received as well as copies of letters sent to contacts across Canada, the United States and Europe); there are also accompanying catalogues, auction records, receipts, inventory lists and newspaper clippings. Files are arranged alphabetically in two blocks: A-N and A-Z. Other records document the administration of Wolfe's company, including tax forms, bills, auction house receipts, auction house catalogues, receipts for office equipment, promotional materials from other businesses, newsletters and newspaper clippings. The fonds consists of the following series: Business Correspondence (1958-1984) and Financial Administration (1958-1985).
Fonds documents Michel Brisebois's work as a rare books curator and librarian, and antiquarian bookseller. The records include extensive correspondence from approximately 1966 to 1994 (textual and on diskette), as well as evaluations of libraries and archives including the Archives nationales du Québec, the McCord Musum, the McGill University Libraries, the Université de Montréal, Université du Québec à Montréal, and others. The fonds also contains Brisebois's agenda books, catalogues, and financial records, as well as documents relating to the Antiquarian Booksellers Association of Canada.
Fonds documents Grant Woolmer's career as an antiquarian book dealer. The records include:
Card File. 1954 – 1998, 628.5 cm of 3" x 5" (7.5 cm x 12.5 cm) index cards describing every book owned and sold by Grant Woolmer giving description and price. Over 30,000 cards.
Catalogues. 1954 – 1998, 180 cm. Complete run of catalogues of Antique Book Shop, later Grant Woolmer Books. Over 400 different catalogues.
Financial Records. 1954 – 1998, 250 cm. 6 ledgers giving daily income and disbursements; invoices, etc.
Mailing list, undated, 5 cm. Some 200 names of institutions, dealers and private collectors mimeographed on 7 sheets.
Newspaper clippings and ephemera. 1980 –1998, 5 cm. File consisting of clippings and articles relating to the antiquarian book trade, as well obituaries of antiquarian book dealers and collectors. About 200 items.
Bates List Finder. 1980s – 1990s, 3 cm. Alphabetical telephone directory and addresses for frequently called numbers.
Fonds consists primarily of correspondence between Hertel de Rouville and members of the Canadian government, including Chief Secretary of Lower Canada Sir Thomas William Clinton Murdoch (1809-1891) and Governors General Lord Gosford and Charles Bagot, regarding financial losses he incurred during the rebellions of 1837, 1838, and 1839, and half-pay claims dating from his time as captain of the Canadian Voltigeurs during the War of 1812. Also included are five envelopes with wax seals intact.
Fonds consists of a one document, a manuscript of reminiscences of Charles James, born in Montreal in 1835. The document is internally dated in April 1915. James describes his childhood as the son of a carriage and sleigh builder born in England who conducted much business for the British military stationed in Montreal. The family resided on Craig Street. Reminiscences include descriptions of Montreal, the building of the locks on the Lachine canal, a trip up the Ottawa River to Bytown (Ottawa) and then to Kingston, where the family resided for a time. James joined his father in the trade of carriage trimming as a young man before becoming a Baptist minister in Stratford, Canada, and later Wellesley.
Fonds consists of six autograph signed letters written at Montreal by Ann Adams, dated between 24 March 1834 to 26 December 1937, to her son Edward H. in Providence, Rhode Island, and Philadelphia. Letters contain local news (churches and organs built, the railroad to St. Johns, fires, printing and publishing, cholera, etc.), observations on the worsening tensions between Papineau and the "Canadiens" and the "Loyalists," and accounts of preaching by an Indigenous convert to Christianity.
The fonds documents John Mappin’s occupation as an independent antiquarian book seller, his personal interest in the history of print and Canadian politics, and his personal achievements as an author. The wide variety of subject files found in this collection are almost entirely North American based and span from 1733-2004. These records reflect Mappin’s particular focus on Canadian authors and Canadiana in general.
This fonds contains material related to the writing career, environmental activism, and personal life of Mona Elaine Adilman. The documents cover a period between approximately 1935 and 1991. Much of the material relates to Adilman's poetry, fiction, and essay writing. In addition to manuscripts of poetry, books, and essays, there are research materials, promotional materials, grant materials, and correspondence related to writing and publishing. There are also materials related to her music writing.
